Automatic External Defibrillators (AEDs) are used by first responders such as police officers, fire fighters, and emergency medical technicians to resuscitate victims of sudden cardiac arrest. These devices are designed to be simple to operate so they can be used by rescuers who do not have an extensive medical background, and who do not routinely defibrillate patients.
Studies have shown that the chances of successfully resuscitating a patient decrease approximately ten percent per minute following the onset of cardiac arrest. Accordingly, if an AED and a trained rescuer do not reach the patient in the first ten minutes, a victim of sudden cardiac arrest has nearly no chance of surviving. Because response time is critical, AEDs are currently being carried in emergency vehicles such as police cars and fire trucks. AEDs are also being widely deployed in areas where large numbers of people gather such as sports stadiums, gambling casinos, etc.
A significant limitation of the AEDs which have been deployed is that they can only be used on adult patients. Children who fall victim to cardiac arrest do not benefit from the wide deployment of AEDs, or the network of first responders who have been trained to operate AEDs. A pediatric patient must wait for a manual defibrillator and a doctor, nurse, or other professional who is qualified to operate a manual defibrillator.